


acting alphas do not (th)ink

by maraudersourwolf



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Tradition, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at Humor, Getting Together, Getting a Tattoo, Idiots in Love, M/M, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Packmates to Lovers, Romantic Face Punching, Tattoos, The Author Regrets Everything, frienemies to lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 08:57:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17179916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maraudersourwolf/pseuds/maraudersourwolf
Summary: Getting his day ruined by Liam’s antics is not exactly something unheard off.But he has to admit the tattoo part is kinda new.





	acting alphas do not (th)ink

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WillowOdair](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WillowOdair/gifts).



> **P r o m p t**  
>  Liam getting a tattoo, like how Scott and Derek both have tattoos and were both Alphas of the pack, even when Scott wasn't an actual Alpha yet. And now Liam is the acting Alpha.  
>  **+** background Sterek and Theo and Derek friendships
> 
>  
> 
> Surprise, Brittany!  
> I'm your Secret Santa.  
> I'm so very sorry.
> 
>  
> 
> I don't have anything to say that you guys don't already know.  
> I struggled. Hard.  
> Which seems to happen when you try turn the very specific road a prompt has into another completely different thing.  
> And because that's the only way I seem to do things, actually.
> 
>  
> 
> Is this christmas related?   
> No.
> 
> Am I still submitting it with not even forced christmas decorations in it?  
> You can bet I am.
> 
>  
> 
> Barely to none beta'd.  
> Most likely messy.  
> Sorry not sorry about this.  
> Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

“Are you sure it’s necessary?”

“Of course it’s necessary,” Liam grumbles, feet up in the dashboard, even when Theo already told him that if he did that again, he’d slice his feet off and feed them to their neighbour’s dog. “Derek had one, and then he was alpha. Scott had one, and then he was alpha. And now I’m doing one--”

The image of Liam counting with his fingers as if that was some irrefutable way of sharing knowledge would be incredibly adorable if it wasn’t for one teeny tiny detail that’s failing in the whole equation.

“You’re not an alpha”

See, it’s not that Theo likes popping Liam’s dream bubble every now and then. That’s a lie. He fucking loves it. And that really annoyed pout right there, that makes Theo both want to kiss it and laugh in the face of danger? Everything he ever wanted.

“Yet”

“Ever,” Theo mumbles, taking the turn that’s supposed to lead them closer to the tattoo parlour and that, strangely, goes way out of town into the most outside corners of it. “Scott is just going to college, not leaving the pack”

“But I’ll be the acting alpha when that happens”

“Yeah, I’m not sure Scott thought about that pretty well-- HEY! I’M DRIVING!”

Liam sticks his tongue out at him, like the really mature acting alpha he’s going to be, as if getting punched in the arm while he is driving in an avenue wasn’t at all part of proving his point.

Scott is just sending them to their demise.

 

*

 

"So did you think of a design, a concept, anything--?"

"It has to be black. And simple. Like a line, but not a line because that'd be boring but it shouldn't be too complicated because--"

Theo can see the moment that it dawns on the tattoo artist what their fate is going to be for the rest of the appointment. It's like a switch going off inside their brain. Where there was a  _ ready to help you _ smile is now a  _ I beg death to take my soul to their realm _ one.

He never thought that the first time feeling compassionate would be on a moment like this.

 

*

 

Theo is pretty sure that neither Derek nor Scott sing screamed the whole time the needle went into their body because  **a)** they knew what getting a tattoo involved,  **b)** they did it by they own volition, and  **c)** the fact that they are werewolves was pretty fresh in their minds all the time.

Somewhere along the line, Liam managed to forget all of that.

 

*

 

“Delete it”

“What are you talking about?,” Theo smiles widely at him, in the best  _ I don’t even know what you’re talking about _ way he can. The very same one he used to deceive most of the True Alpha’s pack successfully years ago and that he now uses to convince Liam that he  _ totally did not eat the last Pop Tarts at all, are you sure Dr. Geyer didn’t took it? _ and that works with the same efficiency as ever.

“You know what I’m talking about,” Liam growls.

“I have absolutely no idea”

He totally has an idea.

One that has everything to do with the five minute video of Liam violently humming an off tune version mix of  _ Old McDonald _ ,  _ Twinkle twinkle little star _ and  _ Call me maybe _ at the face of his tattoo artist, that couldn’t care less about the musical threat they were getting, each time they pressed the needle back into the wolf’s skin. All of that with Theo’s barely held laughter in the background.

“If I see you share that with someone, you’re a dead man”

And that’s the wonder of the technological age, Liam doesn’t have to actually see him do anything for Theo to be doing something.

Now, the surprise when Liam pops into the pack’s chat group, well.

That’s a whole different story.

 

*

 

He did get a surprise out of that too.

A more bloody  _ knuckles on your nose _ surprise.

But it counts anyways.

 

*

 

“WHY IS IT GONE!?”

“What? What is gone?”

“MY TATTOO, IT’S GONE!”

Theo looks to his side, and clearly, the tattoo that was on Liam's thigh just minutes before is gone now. 

Poof.

Vanished.

Se finite.

Same as Liam's chill.

Just the way it was supposed to be.

“We need to go back,” Liam growls, slapping the back of Theo's seat and looking at the road as if the tattoo parlour would pop into existence out of nowhere.

“I'm not taking you back there”

Liam is starting to smell like firecrackers and Theo know that if he pushes the wrong buttons now, he'd set up the werewolf equivalent of a bomb inside of his truck.

Which would end up with him having to kill Liam. And he's trying really hard to keep murder out his diet lately.

Specially when it involves the people he actually likes.

Which is only Liam, but whatever.

“I paid $250 for a tattoo that just vanished in 20 minutes and--”  

"And it was a wound, so your body healed it, big deal"

Theo doesn't remember seeing such an outraged face on Liam before. It's as if Theo just insulted every one of his friends, his looks, his intelligence and every cell in his body all at once. Something he already did, more than once, in the past and never gained such a gold worthy expression.

It's a bit offensive that it happens when he's finally a 'nice guy', if he's honest.

But the worst thing of all is that he's finding it irresistible in a really adorable way.

"I'll take you to Derek's"

"Why Derek's? I want the tattoo parlour--"

"So you have explain everyone in there that you're a werewolf that absorbed the tattoo ink into their body and that now needs to re-do it every 20 minutes in hopes of it staying like it'd normally do, when you know we are not exactly normal?"

That whole explanation doesn't seem to deter Liam from trying to mentally make the truck change its course and run back to the tattoo parlour.

So Theo goes exactly to where it goes.

"Do you have money for that?"

"No, I--," whatever excuse Liam is ready to use dies as soon as Theo looks at him with an arched brow.

They both know that Liam doesn't have the money for that. Liam barely had the money to pay for the first one and that was because he asked for 20 dollars borrowed from Theo. That if borrowed meant by extortion because it seems that living under the Dunbars roof has to be enough of a reason to give away money willingly.

In fact, Theo's sure that Liam isn't even legal enough to get a tattoo yet and that he could extort him back but that’s a card he’d rather save for later.

“Then we go to Derek's”

Liam doesn’t even complain this time and Theo can internally admit he’s glad.

That way, at least one of them all would be able to say they know what they are doing in life.

 

*

 

Theo's proud to admit that he reaches Derek's loft with a pouting Liam without getting the murders.

He's doing progress after all.

That if he settles the ground rule that the urge to kiss that pout away doesn't count as part of keeping his urges at bay.

 

*

 

“You need to burn it”

“I need to what now!?,” Liam squawks.

Derek looks at him and Theo can see how fucking quickly the light of his soul is leaving his body. All it took a short interaction of 0.02 seconds with Liam to make Derek rethink all of his decisions in life, which is a miracle is they have in mind that he did end up in a relationship with Stiles. 

And by extent, with Scott, because you can’t have one without the other.

Theo can also see a smidge of sympathy in the older wolf’s eyes that has nothing to do with him having to be the designed pack babysitter of Liam and everything to do with knowing that the chimera, from every person in the world, ended up with a big fat crush on the baby blue eyed boy.

But he’ll ignore that part, because he doesn’t want to eclipse Derek’s moment.

“You do know that we are werewolves, right? We heal--,” Derek sighs, looking back at Liam, “Tattoos are a wound. You heal over them. You need something that would stop you from healing”

“Y’know what? I really don’t mind losing $250, I--”

“Don’t be dumb,” Theo grumbles, pushing Liam back down into the chair and grabbing his shoulders to keep him in place.

Liam looks up at him with a frown and Theo knows the gears in the baby beta are working at full speed in the perfect direction.

“You knew about this, didn’t you?,” Liam growls.

Theo did know about it but in his defense, he also did thought that Liam had incoursed on a bit of a research time when it came to getting a tattoo being a supernatural being.

The part where he knew Liam wouldn’t actually do it so he’d keep it to himself in lue of being able to hold the wolf for a little while without involving death surrounding them or a petty fist fight had nothing to do with this.

“It wasn’t my idea to get you tattooed”

Is it a distraction? Yes.

Does he feel ashamed to use it? No at all.

Derek looks at him, because of course he knows. He often breaks tha grandpa speech and goes on about how he remembered when he was in the same shoes. But Theo knows that Derek isn’t going to say anything now, because they’re actually brother in arms. 

If he has to put up with Derek mooning over even on the way Stiles is able to eat pizza and end up looking like Hugh Ledger’s Joker, then he’s able to keep certains details about getting your tattoo properly roasted when you’re a supernatural for the sake of a tad bit of weird intimacy. 

_ All is fair in war and love _ , is the saying. For some it means sacrifice, doing your best self for someone. For others, it involves a torch flame.

Good thing it’s open to interpretation.

 

*

 

“Did Scott also pass out from the pain?”

“No,” Derek replies, picking up Liam from the floor as if he were nothing more than the ugly tapestry at the front door and handing him to Theo to deal with, “That was Stiles”

Good to know Liam keeps the family resemblance somehow.

 

*

 

“Is it healing? I read that when tattoos don't heal properly, you get infections and some people get pieces chopped off. I can't get my leg chopped off because--" 

"You're a werewolf, it already healed"

"Are you sure?"

"That you're a werewolf?"

"That it healed"

He's starting to come to terms that sort of being part of the pack and having a crush isn't enough for having to deal with this.

And that Scott indeed is trying to end them all.

 

*

 

The pack meeting at Liam’s house seemed a bit extra.

But then again, all of this was pretty extra, so Theo decides to just let it slide.

 

*

 

Turns out the tattoo really wasn’t necessary.

 

*

 

“So... you got a tattoo”

Scott's face is of utter surprise, eyes glued to the tattoo, and Theo doesn't even blame him. He himself is still surprised that not only Liam decided to pull this nonsense of a plan while also managing to show that he can be pretty stupid for being so intelligent the rest of the time.

That without mention that Liam managed to drag him with just the strength of his puppy eyes.

“All alphas have a tattoo”

"That's the keyword," Stiles quipped, ignoring completely the murdering baby blue glare that's aimed at him.

“And you let him?,” Scott asks, this time turning to look at Theo.

And no.

Nope.

No way.

Theo isn’t going to take responsibility on something Liam did, because he has enough with taking responsibility of the stuff he does. 

Besides, he’s not really a babysitter. Not at all. Liam is a big boy, that knows pretty well what he’s setting himself up for, because he’s intelligent. And pretty. And has some amazing blue eyes. And--

And he lost the point, but the answer is still no.

"As much as you want me to be the guilty one--"

“He didn’t let me,” Liam grumbles, crossing his arms, and Theo swears there’s a 0.2 second window before Liam just starts to pout like a child and he'll have to leave the room to avoid crashing their lips together. “It was my decision, he just drove me there because I don’t have a licence”

“You have a licence,” Corey retorts from somewhere in the back. He's taking turning invisible into an art form.

“I don’t have a car,” the beta wolf grumbles in a way that screams 'fangs are poking, beware'.

“You do have a car, I’m pretty sure I saw--,” this time is Stiles's voice, with a hint of mockery and a dash of 'I see what you're doing there' but the sentence dies with Derek's hand slapping the human's mouth rather on purpose.

Liam is starting to turn beet red and Theo isn’t sure if that’s a good sign or if this is a sign of them needing to scramble away and seek shelter. Maybe both, if Theo's lucky, so he can finally leave behind the torture of being the designated babysitter when he has whole differents plans that involve the little beta.

“Don’t listen to them, Liam,” Scott mutters with a smile, doing the Dad Pat™ on Liam’s shoulder, which seems to only worsen things a bit further. “It’s okay if you want to spend time with Theo alone, Stiles used to make all kind of stupid excuses to be around Derek and--”

This is when he expect that the blowing up meant more punches thrown into the air, blood splattering the walls, roars of fury kind of thing. 

It's more his style than Liam's, it seems to be, because the little beta just storms away, muttering under his breath whatever half-assed insult he can come up with.

And it's definitely not that there's a good style of blowing up.

But Liam's is positively more lame.

 

*

 

Turns out he not only is the babysitter, but also some kind of a housekeeper when Liam isn’t around. 

So he’s going to attend his duties and take care of them by kicking everyone out.

 

*

 

He can’t really say he dislikes the housekeeper that part.

 

*

 

“Did everyone leave”

Liam is starfished over his bed, the very same one that Theo kept telling him not to climb on because Liam is one of those people that are always disgustingly damp and even if he does enjoy the natural scent of the wolf, he’s not so keen on sweat.

“Yeah, not thanks to you”

“I’m sure you enjoyed kicking Stiles out”

He did indeed.

Even more knowing he had the perk of being Derek’s friend and being excused of almost everything, as long as it didn’t involve drawing blood or deadly maim the human.

“So, the tattoo--”

“Seemed like a good idea”

“It was never a good idea, you just didn’t listen”

"It wasn't an excuse," Liam grumbles, "I mean it was an excuse but it wasn't really an excuse because I really thought about tattooing but then I didn't want to go alone and I know Mason would have been fine with going with me but I didn't want him to go with me because I really really wanted to go with you but I didn't really think it through and--”

It’s too many words and Theo was only able to hear like half of those before he zoned into Liam’s lips. And maybe that’s the whole thing, Liam distracting him enough with his pretty eyes and his pink plump lips and the many words that Theo doesn’t care about for who knows what. Making him weak maybe. 

So Theo does the only thing that makes sense to show he’s not weak.

And he kisses Liam.

 

*

 

See, getting punched in the face wasn’t part of his really well thought plan of how to make Liam shut up and show him that he’s not weakling, no sir.

But then again, nothing related to Liam is logical enough to be foreseeable, so that one is on him.

 

*

 

“I’m not sure I said sorry,” Liam mumbles, looking at Theo with that face of  _ not sorry at all but my mom said I should be sorry, even if she’s not the boss of me _ .

“For punching me after I kissed you or for existing?”

“Don’t push it,” Liam grumbles, still looking at him. Asserting dominance or some crap like that, that acting alphas think real alphas do. Maybe expecting the blood to squirt out of his nostrils. Or for him to complain. 

Joke’s on him though.

“You didn’t even punch that hard”

His nose didn’t think the same this time.

 

*

 

An observation: maybe he should learn to not say stuff like that when his nose is still in the process of healing.

 

*

 

Theo still hasn’t gotten his apology.

 

*

 

It takes a while, but Liam gets there.

Not to the apology, Theo lost track of that one since the moment he came back from hell. For such a morally ambiguous pack, Theo has still to experience what either gratitude or an apology feels like. He gets it, okay? He murders a couple of people, crumbles the pack to pieces, broke apart the strong bromance that Stiles and Scott had going since the beginning of time and almost turned Liam into a murderer.

But all it happened in the end was that they used his evilness like a hard counseling, so they’re welcome.

Besides he’s a changed chimera.

Mostly.

It doesn’t count when it only happens in your head, anyways.

The thing is Liam who kisses Theo this time.

And Theo who kiss with his knuckles back.

 

*

 

“What was that punch for!?,” Liam’s voice is too high and nasally, which makes it pretty hard to keep a straight face and not just laugh at his face.

So Theo doesn’t even try.

“Payback”

It doesn’t take long for the same set of knuckles he came to recognize by almost memory to collide against his face again.

At least this time he sort of deserve to be punched back.

 

*

 

It takes a couple of punches more before they remember that kissing is also a way of letting out frustration.

And they are not afraid to use it.

 

*

 

Is between the third kiss without knuckles involved and Liam's giggle over his lips that Theo decides that maybe this whole day was worth it after all.

 

*

 

The tattoo idea is still terrible.

And Theo is going to make sure Liam never lives that one down.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> You can scream at me in the comments in whichever language you like.  
> I swear I know how to use google translate like a pro.


End file.
